The Grove

By: John Rector

Narrated by: Todd Haberkorn

Length: 5 hrs

Publisher's Summary

In John Rector’s dark and fascinating psychological thriller, The Grove, farmer Dexter McCray becomes both detective and suspect. He is a man fighting to escape a troubled past, but after waking from an alcoholic blackout to discover his tractor stuck in a ditch and the body of a teenage girl in the cottonwood grove bordering his cornfield, he wonders if it’s a fight he cannot win. In the hopes of proving his innocence, he sets out to find the truth. Now, isolated from friends and family and devoid of an alibi, he turns to the only person left who can help pick up the pieces of his shattered life…the dead girl herself.

Rector understands the complexities of a haunting tale and a compelling who-done-it, and he takes listeners on a ride that is both memorable and unsettling.

©2012 John Rector (P)2012 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Critic Reviews

“Tough, dark, and beautifully told. Great storytelling.” (David Peoples, screenwriter of Unforgiven, Twelve Monkeys, and Blade Runner)

“Spare and evocative as a cornfield in autumn, The Grove marks the arrival of a haunting, powerful new voice in contemporary fiction. John Rector writes with deceptive grace, spinning out irresistible prose with a dark pulse between every line. This is psychological suspense at its most seductive. I loved it.” (Sean Doolittle, award-winning author of Dirt, Burn, Rain Dogs, The Cleanup, and Safer)

A waste of time!!

I quit my efforts to listen to The Grove at the midway point. I like some of John Rector's novels, but not this one. I like many very dark novels so that is not the issue. The issue is boredom. Narration is OK.

6 of 8 people found this review helpful

Wasted two hours in futility

Would you try another book from John Rector and/or Todd Haberkorn?

No.

What was most disappointing about John Rector’s story?

The story was oddly disjointed with no clear path or hook.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Todd Haberkorn?

J. Charles hands down. I would probably suffer through a lousy story just to hear him tell it.

What character would you cut from The Grove?

After listening for two hours I didn't care for any of them. I believe that speaks for itself.

Any additional comments?

The narrator really needs to work on his breathing technique. The writer...better outlining or character development?

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

not my favorite

This book was ok but not my favorite by Rector. It was a little weird, not suspenseful.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Well written but such a sad broken story

Well I am just not into such depressing stories. I thought this would be a different type of story in the long run as my kindle unlimited recommended it to me supposedly based on books I liked but sadly they were mistaken . There wasn't anything healing about it just madness and depression. Not my thing.

The performance was good... Story was....

So so. The story is about a mental I'll man that I think has schizophrenia. He sees a ghost of a dead girl. She torments him and trys to make him to do bad things.
The story itself was really hard to follow along with.

*Spoiler Warning*

I would have killed myself long before he tried to and I wouldn't have just put a gun to my chin, I would make sure I was dead with the gun at the side of my head and going through both hemispheres... or I could have just taken my pills. And this is coming from someone who has had pills shoved down their throat rather than parents admitting they were abusive.

Wow this was great listen!

This story was good start to finish. The narrator did a great job transitioning between the different characters and very skillfully voiced the mood and personality changes within the main character. 5 stars!

Good mind mess

A man with mental illness and who drinks instead of taking his pills finds a body in his cornfield, or rather in the "grove" nearby. This could have been written by Stephen King. It kept me enthralled all the way. What a mess.

Great book!

wow. this was a great book! I didn't want it to end. can't wait to read more

Enjoyed

Entertaining. Somewhat predictable Great narration Helped pass the time while working on a mundane project. Curious about ore from this author.

Boring

This whole story is about a drunk hallucinating about a dead girl he found and kept, on his farm. The narrators voice is dull and dreary, the story is not reconciled and I felt no empathy for any of the characters. I would love to know what other people think.

2 of 3 people found this review helpful